Bitcoin Forum

      So very little information is available to the public at large about these very rare and important part of Bitcoin history. I am willing to share here all the knowledge I have been able to gather from my hunt for these very rare items. For the lucky few who have these and for the many that are still hunting, I hope this helps everyone in the understanding of Bitbills. They were made before Casascius and thus the very first physical representation of Bitcoin.

  On the 9th May 2011 a new concept was introduced to the world of Bitcoin. BitBills was the very first incarnation of Bitcoin in a physical form. This was sold to the public in the form of a credit sized card loaded with Bitcoin. As of May 15, 2012, Bitbills were no longer in production.
  
  A public key was visible to check on blockchain the amount of Bitcoin inside the card. The private key was hidden behind a hologram, only to be exposed when ready to sweep the Bitcoin out.

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  Who knows where we stand today and how many were redeemed when Bitcoin hit 20k last year!

  As per manufacturer...

  
  A Bitbill is a plastic card that holds the cryptographic key that will allow the face value amount of the card to be spent. The key is on a QR code embedded within the card such that it cannot be read without the card showing evidence of tampering. Additionally, the card has a hologram affixed to ensure that the card is not a counterfeit.


The intention is that the card will be left unopened and then can be treated as money by being acceptable at face value when making a transaction in-person at a retailer, for example. At any time, the card can be opened and the funds spent through the Bitcoin payment network. Once the card has been opened it will no longer be acceptable as payment anywhere else due to the fact that its private key has already been revealed.
At the time this article was created, the ability to spend a Bitbill required that a patch to the Bitcoin software be in place.
The cards come in denominations of 1 BTC, 5 BTC, 10 BTC and 20 BTC. Orders for the cards are accepted online and the only form of payment is Bitcoin.

I've grouped the security concerns into three classes: Counterfeiting, tampering, and source-trust.

Source-trust means that you have to trust me, and I haven't thought of a good way around that. I promise that I put the bitcoins on the cards, delete the private keys, and use a secured manufacturing process. My hope is that as people begin buying, using, and redeeming Bitbills, they will form a trusting relationship with me the same way you might have a trusting relationship with MtGox and other companies.

Counterfeiting is the problem of others copying our cards and passing them off as real (presumably without even including the private key). Our cards are fundamentally hard to manufacture. When handling Bitbills, always check that the design matches the one shown on our website to make sure it's an authentic card. We use holograms that are very difficult to replicate. As our business grows, we plan to implement more and more security features.

Tampering is the problem of people extracting the private key without it being visible. We put the private key actually inside of the layers of plastic, so it's not just a simple matter of carefully peeling off a sticker or anything. The hologram is directly on top of the private key, also within the plastic. Even if it is somehow covertly extracted (once you see one of these, you'll see just how impossible that seems), the hologram destructs when removed.

We're working hard to make sure Bitbills are as sound as bitcoins themselves (if not better, since they clear instantly). But remember, like all the best stuff, they are BETA









  Out of all the Bitbills ever made, the metal Bitbills bank cards and payee cards were the rarest as less than 20 were ever sold before the company closed down and that I have from an official source. How many pairs were made out of these, who really knows and how may survived is anyone's guess.

    BitBills Bank Cards were aluminum cards, engraved with the public and private keys. Two cards come in a set: a 'payee card,' which includes the public key only, both in human-readable Base 58 and QR code formats; and a 'bank card,' which includes the private key in QR, as well as the public and private keys in human-readable Base 58 format.”

                    Bank cards are like piggy banks for bitcoins. Load it with your bitcoins, put it in a safe place and your money is securely locked away until you choose to redeem it. Redemption is as simpe as scanning in the bank cards QR code, which encodes the private key

                    
                Payee cards are durable metal cards which display a bitcoin address, making it easy to accept payment. They include a URI encoded QR-code of the bitcoin address which makes it easy for you to accept payments from smartphone users. Payee cards can be purchased tied to a bank card or for an address you already use.





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Very informative, thanks Krog

I learned this when breezing through the book on your site.  I must say, very well done, it's incredibly informative &  constantly growing in comprehensive prowess.

  Thankyou very much both..appreciate that.

   I listed most of my information here as many have not visited or taken the time to go thru the site.

  There is more but I think what I have listed here is enough for the person looking to seek information on these rarities.

    They are my most prized physical bitcoins out of my entire collection. I consider them the holy grail of crypto physicals.

Thankyou MJ. It will be a good reference for sure  :D

Krog thanks for this, ive always looked in scattered places for information.  I too consider these one of the mecca pieces as they were the first of its kind.  Kind of hard collecting them now but if it were too easy than we'd all have them and bitcoin wouldnt be where it is now, saving this thread for future reference thanks.

This is awesome, good work Krog.

No kidding and agreed. I want a B.B. new or used very badly! This is just one cool piece of Krogo’s super encyclopedia though (his website)

that's really cool thread kroga, now i need these even more

am sure you have a nice collection of these as well :D

- In the beginning Satoshi created Bitcoin….
-
- Now the Bitcoin was formless and empty, Ignorance Fear Uncertainty and Doubt existed on amongst the people as they could not comprehend what was Bitcoin.
-
- So Satoshi declared…we shall make man see and feel the bitcoin so he or she can have a better understanding. * -

- He thus created an idea, so revolutionary in concept that he blessed a man to carry out his blessing to mankind.
-
- Thus said Satoshi “ I will bless man with knowledge of how to transform a digital coin into a physical coin”

- Thus one morning a man awoke up with an idea given to him by the Spirit of the almighty Satoshi..

- “Perhaps a physical bitcoin will make the masses believe, understand and love Bitcoin as have I”
-
- He knelt and prayed and thanked the almighty Satoshi for the revelation.
-
- He went to work at once and thus my children the idea of a physical bitcoin was born
-
- Satoshi's son Bitcoin came to us as a reincarnation of a physical being in the form of a card.
-
- And they named him Bitbills.

   He is here to save manskinds economy from the evil bankers greed.

   Physical Bitcoin Creed (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=3440405.0)

Here is some info about the 5 BTC BitBill.

I cannot verify the initial count of 144, but let's assume it's close.

This figure was provided by Charlie Lee himself back in a much older forum post when he sold off his collection of Casc and BitBills. I failed to properly quote it in my prior auctions. But, it's safe to assume he would have used blockchain transactions to figure it out.

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=199785.0




This 1 transaction starting from an even 1000 BTC funded most or all of the 5 BTC bitbills. Perhaps a 1st or 2nd smaller batch is out there too.

https://blockexplorer.com/tx/9f9c271886e860898ca3781b21e20b734fda44c2c5e712bb936da61ca56bfe91 (https://blockexplorer.com/tx/9f9c271886e860898ca3781b21e20b734fda44c2c5e712bb936da61ca56bfe91)

As of May 1, 2018, there are 50 Unspent, and 76 spent outputs. The total count of 5 BTC outputs is 126 on the above transaction, which is pretty close to the 144 presumed in existence.

From this then it's safe to assume that there are probably at least 50 left intact, and probably not more than 68 of the 144 presumed to exist.

Josh...Thankyou so much.
 
              That clarifies alot about where those numbers came from.

Can someone post some photos of bitbills in the wild? Feel free to take photos of your bitbills next to your lambos, islands, etc.  I am sure there is someone here that will show off? 8) ???

Is an auction of BitBills planned soon?

There are no auctions planned from my collection.

I cannot speak for others. Its been well over a year since I have seen a Bitbills auction in this forum or anywhere else for that matter.

Mouth watering.

Nice collection, I especially like that 'green plastic' BitBill.  ;D


 

Thankyou GP.

What you are looking at are

Two complete redeemed Bitbills sets of 1BTC,5BTC,10BTC and 20 BTC

Two Loaded 1 BTC BitBills

Five Metal Bitbills, two are sets and one is solo

I also placed velvet in the back with plexiglass so I can just turn the frame around and see the other side of the Bitbills.  ;)

holy moly, very nice collection krogo! I'd love to get a redeemed set aswell :o

Wow, priceless comes to mind :)

Hey krog can i come and work in your office  8)

Thats one fine piece ya got there

Are the metal ones loaded?

Thankyou bavi!  I have searched the highways and byways of the internet and cryptoworld to acquire these and am still on the prowl.  :D


Thanks Dolphriends..... I came up with the idea one day to have someone make this for me but decided to do it on my own.

                                  What better way to appreciate Bitcoin history art than to see if daily instead of buried 6 feet under?  ;)



You are welcome to stop by anytime Wheelz  :D


  Very good question Killyou.

  BitBills Bank Cards were aluminum cards, engraved with the public and private keys. Two cards come in a set: a 'payee card,' which includes the public key only, both in human-readable Base 58 and QR code formats; and a 'bank card,' which includes the private key in QR, as well as the public and private keys in human-readable Base 58 format.”

    So none of the metal ones came loaded. A person had two cards..one with only the Public key and the other with both the public and private keys on the card.

    The person would carry the one with only the public key and people deposited to that card once they scanned the qr code.

    Then when the time came for a person to withdraw the BTC all he had to do is go home or the bank box and take the card with the private key and sweep BTC from there.

    The green one which is the one in the center has had over 300 BTC go thru it! I bought it from a member of the Bitcoin Foundation. Was lucky to acquire every one of these to be honest as they are the rarest

of the Bitbills. Very very few were sodl. I believe less than 20 were sodl

That is a really nice set you have there.

I needed to update this thread on the amount of Metal Bitbills made.

I met with the maker of the Metal Bitbills and he confirmed that even though 20 or less were probably made, probably less than 15 or 10 were ever sodl.

I was fortunate to also pick up these prototypes and a set of Metal Bitbills .  https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5071142.msg47999056#msg47999056 (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5071142.msg47999056#msg47999056)

Just bought a book....


Cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin, Blockchain and Beyond (Looking Forward)
By The New York Times Editorial Staff

Guess what they used on the cover of their book?  ;)

https://talkimg.com/images/2023/06/10/ATyjd.jpeg?maxwidth=640&shape=thumb&fidelity=medium

And on the inside cover as follows...

https://talkimg.com/images/2023/06/10/ATJD5.jpeg?maxwidth=640&shape=thumb&fidelity=medium


Hmmmm...wish I was there when they were $17!

Sweet!  ;D

This is a great thread Krogoth! BitBills are one of the coolest Bitcoin collectible. Unfortunately, it's becoming too expensive to own a set. That said, I still have a set to sell. 😀

Thankyou Charlie...couldn't agree more! :D

Goodluck on your sale...I am sure an Uber Whale will snap em up

I decided to run the code that I wrote that checks for intact bitbills. I found that all the bitbills funds were sent from one address originally. So following the blockchain, you can find all the bitbills that were funded from that one address.


As one expect, a lot of the larger bills have been peeled. So there are now at most only 32 complete sets of bitbills that are intact.

Here's the python code in case anyone is interested:

This is certainly one of the rarest and most valuable sets out there. Nice work updating the thread fellas! It's great having this resource available to us all whether we're new or well versed. I find tremendous value in these threads.

Thx for the link very useful piece of BTC-history :)

 As those who know me well know...I love BTCitBTCills. And I am always pursuing leads and hunting for these elusive and rare collectables.
I recently was able to come across some unique items that are one of a kind BTCitBTCills items.
Wanted to share a proof sheet of BTCitBTCills. that I had to have framed and add alongside my other BTCitBTCills frame.
What you see is the front of a proof sheet of Bitbills. On the other side is the QR code sheet for the public keys.

https://talkimg.com/images/2023/06/10/ATrv2.jpeg

😲

What gods name did you come across there krog.  Nice score!

The King of bitbills  8)

Wow!

Thanks for this thread @krogothmanhattan, I confess I didn't even know these existed, the whole thread was fascinating. No doubt some of these are floating around at the bottom of deskdraws of people that forgot they even had them.

In 20 years they'll be like Picasso's that people find in the barn attic of their grandfathers!

I may or may not have gotten a sneak peek of this absolute beauty and holy shit it doesn't get cooler than this! I think Krogo plans to eventually cut into that sheet and then do a free raffle for the individual bitbill prototypes  :D :D

On a serious note, you are the king of hunting for cool stuff. I don't know how you do it but I wish I had those skills!

man look at all of those! and here I am just trying to find one to add to my collection! lol very nice group you have there @krogothmanhattan!

Here I am thinking proofs sheets are only available in fiat currencies and you go on and drop this. Congratulations on the amazing addition to your collection and thank you for sharing  :)

  It has long been a topic of conversation amongst us physical bitcoin collectors on who made the very first loaded bitcoin item.


There was a theory that Gavin Andreson created one back in 2010. After all it was his original idea that started it all as you can see from the following thread..https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=2537.msg34413#msg34413

    In it he states...


      So for years people have always debated who was the very first. Well I finally reached out to Mr Andreson and he replied as follows..

          I never created physical bitcoins— until Bitbills (and then cacascius coins) I didn’t think enough people would trust the creator to destroy the private keys. I was wrong, turns out quite a few people were willing!

these are great to add to a collection - I have been searching and they are hard to find. I will keep looking though, I dont hope to get like you have, but I do want to find at least one to add to mine lol

They are extremely hard to find. That's both fully funded/bitcoin intact as well as those that have had the bitcoin redeemed. One place to check besides on here ( obviously ) is on redditt.  From time to time I will see people posting BitBills asking about how much they are worth or if anyone is interested in buying them.  Worth a check now and then.

will do - depending on their prices, I would even go for an unfunded. just to have for the collection.

!! these are absolute treasures.

I'm going to keep an eye out :D

Great thread krogothmanhattan

 :o

Few factoids that I don’t believe have been discussed here yet  ..

**  “Curiously, BitBills' original website snapshot lists a "© Qugel LLC." Qugel appears to be a secretive project that may (or may not be) similar to BitSpend and reportedly is (was?) an "arbitrage business listing thousands of items for sale."

**BitBills tried to corner the entire physical bitcoin market, filing a patent request that as far as I can tell was never granted. One big reason might be because they didn’t create the idea, Gavin Andresen did - https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=737.0

Despite the fact that it’s pretty clear BitBills and Casascius both stemmed from Gavin’s idea/the above thread discussion..BitBills wanted Casascius to stop making items ..

“We spoke with Mike Caldwell, creator of Casacius coin - He shared with us an exchange he had with one of the co-founders of BitBills years ago that may shed light on their intentions”.

**[00:45] Just to get this out of the way, do you believe that you own any sort of legally recognized intellectual property that precludes what I am doing?

[00:46] yes

[00:47] Would you mind sending me a copy of its registration?

[00:49] Mike, we'll send you anything as we see fit

[00:50] within the next week likely

[00:50] What would you like for me to do? Are you essentially asking that I stop producing physical bitcoins?

[00:52] You could license our tech

[00:52] Do you have a patent on the idea of embedding private keys in objects?

[00:52] I performed a quick search and wasn't able to find such a thing

[00:52] we're in the application process

[00:53] patents take a couple of years to issue

[00:53] in some cases at least

[00:54] you might have a partnership option

[00:55] So what you are saying is you want me to pay you a fee for making physical bitcoins, just so I understand you correctly

[00:56] I never said that

[00:56] You mentioned licensing, so that's how I understood that. If wrong, what do you have in mind?

[00:57] All I'm saying is that it's our position that you've copied our tech.**

Mr. Caldwell also suggested that most of the ideas covered by Mr. Feigelson's proposed patent were discussed in public years earlier”.

Source : https://letstalkbitcoin.com/477

That is a beautiful collection you have there!  :D

I had no idea there were so many versions. But they look great in a frame!

One day I hope I get at least 1 unloaded beta card. My collection is empty without one of this.

Came across 2 of these babies when browsing through my old bitcoin stuff.
Then found this thread.


I ran the Python code again and this came out:
20BTC: 88 (27 intact)
10BTC: 107 (28 intact)
5BTC: 144 (50 intact)
1BTC: 589 (310 intact)

Numbers have gone down again ...

  Lovely pair you got there! :o

 Thanks for the update on the Bitbills that are still intact.

Thanks for sharing.

And good thread @krogoth.

Does anyone know how much these go for nowadays?

If anyone is looking to sell one loaded/unloaded, hit me up.

There was one auctioned off on this forum last year. It was in poor shape since it had been in a persons wallet for a time.
It went for 1.65 BTC.

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5218556.0 (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5218556.0)

Just recently acquired a beautiful set of Bitbills commemorative cards from ColdKey marking a very important anniversary in the physical bitcoin world, the 10 year anniversary of the creation and launch of Bitbills, the very first incarnation of Bitcoin in a physical form!

 

  They will be an excellent addition to my original Bitbills collection and my Cipher Hodl 10 year anniversary set as well.

  https://talkimg.com/images/2023/05/14/bloba8fd16194c69be07.png

Are there any high-quality photos of bitbills on the internet?

I was able to find some good ones but not high enough quality to really work with.

https://i.ibb.co/tM744G0/rJum5.jpg (https://ibb.co/8DW00Cy)
https://i.ibb.co/mRzY970/bitbills.jpg (https://imgbb.com/)
https://i.ibb.co/zRwCCFg/download.jpg (https://imgbb.com/)
https://i.ibb.co/4gg4pvk/E09k9-Yh-XIAI9-Oi-P.jpg (https://ibb.co/qFFmpq6)

get only one of ea? or more? :)

   Only one of each for now...wasn't thinking anyone would be interested in these at all. :D

dammit man lol

2024 update:

20BTC: 88 (26 intact)
10BTC: 107 (27 intact)
5BTC: 144 (49 intact)
1BTC: 589 (297 intact)

Seems a lot of the 1BTC have been cleaned out.
Intact means the bitbill contains as much (or more) value as indicated on the card.

    Thankyou for the update!  I guess the higher Bitcoin goes the more people will peel....please keep on peeling...makes the loaded ones rarer  ;)

    Updated original post with your information provided! 

@JohanM is there a tracker for the bitbills that shows when a card is peeled or where do you get the data from?

Interesting... I had the 20BTC and 10BTC total card count much higher:

20BTC: 181 (26 intact)
10BTC: 143 (27 intact)


Here is the funding address for the Bitbills:

https://mempool.space/address/1FhTe1bMtoKHDbNw13v3BQ9sb2kFTagaRH

Is there a website that tracks the addresses, similar to casascius coins? I'd like to be able to verify the number of bitbills that are still intact.

    I do not think so and have never seen one....that being said I just bought the following two website names

        mybitbills.com and Bitbills.info

     If there is anyone who can wrote a script and make a good website I can host it on one of these sites.

     

 A 1BTC Bitbills on auction at StackBowers current crypto auction, I do believe this is their first ever Bitbills to be offered in their auctions.

  Lets see what the market brings!

   https://auctions.stacksbowers.com/lots/view/3-18DWT5/2011-bitbills-1-bitcoin-card-loaded-firstbits-16d29xiv-genuine-pcgs

    As per site...

     Current Bid $55,000
LOT DESCRIPTION
Rare and Historic Bitbills 1 Bitcoin Card

The Precursor to the Physical Bitcoin Category

2011 Bitbills 1 Bitcoin Card. Loaded. Firstbits 16D29Xiv. Genuine (PCGS).

Loaded with 1 BTC. A landmark rarity that represents the precursor to the entire physical crypto category. Bitbills was created by Douglas Feigelson of Cincinnati, Ohio and the first cards were released in May 2011, predating the earliest coins from the Casascius series by about six months. They established the basic format of protecting a private key beneath a security seal that continues to be utilized by physical crypto producers even to this day. Feigelson even filed an application to patent this concept on December 23, 2011.

Specialist Elias Ahonen remarks in his Encyclopedia that " Bitbills were introduced in May 2011 and were the firsrt non-paper object to display bitcoin in physical form...their role in introducing the idea of physical Bitcoin should not be understated."

Just 589 of these 1 Bitcoin cards were originally produced, though the majority have been redeemed in the 13 years since their release. It is estimated that fewer than 200 cards have survived intact and this number continues to dwindle as time goes on and as the value of Bitcoin increases. This particular card was funded on July 26, 2011 and it remains an invaluable relic of the foundational era of collectible crypto. It is the very first example we have had the pleasure of offering to collectors and it is surely destined for a world-class collection. Public Address: 16D29XivzNxUXMEPNLCXAMwtAmQz7Y6A4k

I can confirm that a full set with firstbits 1AJvoQz4, 1CKDstPd, 1EfjzEoK, 17Zg6YqF is in my possession, safe and sound.

This was essentially the pinnacle of my collection - I've already got a nice bundle of Cas, blocks, BTCC, CIs, Polymerbit, and other wonderfully creative pieces, but Bitbills is up there with the coinbase funded pieces from BTCC.

Some pictures in https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5500094.0

  The photos belong on here as well!

  https://www.talkimg.com/images/2024/06/16/cWhh9.md.jpeg (https://www.talkimg.com/image/cWhh9)
https://www.talkimg.com/images/2024/06/16/cWcFw.md.jpeg (https://www.talkimg.com/image/cWcFw)

Hi guys i am also selling a 1 BTC bit bill, that has been open and redeemed

 Sent you a PM

I've just imported the bitbills collection into collectible.money (https://collectible.money/), quoting over here for completeness and to keep the information in one spot

   Howdy...Thanks for doing this! It helps a hell of alot! And I can confirm from the three loaded Bitbills that I have in my possession, loaded on three different dates....they are all on your list! Cheers!